left hand vrs right hand

[smokepolehall]

Lets talk about Market share. I bet there are 1/4 million ML for real shooters traditional type most likely twice that. Just an estimate of sales for LH'd people 10,000 rifles plus extras. I spect there would be over hundred thousand to cash in on. I have know idea what his cost to tool up would be. Just talking as i don't have anything else to do outside in this heat.

 

[Dusty_Traveler]

Only time I would not shoot a righty is a side hammer mule ear. I think those caps sprays would get you with the face on the side and I would not put a deflector on it for looks purposes. Top side percussion or flintlock no issues what so ever.

I’m a lefty and have had a few mule ears. I’ve never noticed any bad splatter. The hammers have always had a good cup on them, but never an under-the-nipple flash cup.

 

[Dusty_Traveler]

I guess loading a Garand left handed would be mission impossible.

Indeed. Unless you had triple jointed E.T. fingers.

 

[Sidney Smith]

I guess loading a Garand left handed would be mission impossible.

As I said, there aren't any left handed M1s. So as a southpaw, I had no choice but to buy a right handed gun. I learned to load it right handed, however, since I'm left eye dominant amd left handed I shoot it from the left shoulder. I don't like doing it but I don't like the idea of not owning a piece of history more. I've got two left handed AR uppers, with ambidextrous controls on each. I was told by people not to buy them because they'll never sell! I don't buy guns only to sell them, so of course I didn't listen to those idiots.

 

[Cayman like]

What?

 

[Cayman like]

And I would bet VERY heavy odds that pride spends money......

I don't have a need for a Kibler rifle, because I build my own from scratch, but if I couldn't do that like the vast majority of shooters, it's a shame that Kibler doesn't offer lefties. I mean, it's literally a CNC program, isn't it?

No offense intended of course, you market some fantastic stuff, but leaving the southpaws out of the Kibler equation is, well, there's lots of words for that.

Yep.

 

[Cayman like]

I think the better question to be asked would be, why do so many right handed people in the shooting community feel compelled to dictate to the left handed people what they need. It's almost as if a lefty having a lefty rifle offends them somehow. Stupid, just stupid.

Yaasss.

 

[Cayman like]

In Army Basic Training they had us lefty tape a piece of cardboard on our m-16 so the shell wouldn't hit us in the face. When I got to the 82nd Airborne I abandoned that and only rarely got a hot shell bouncing off my face. First shot r.h. muzzleloaders l.h. no problem! Now shoot left-handed ones exclusively. Like lefty better!

 

[James Kibler]

Well I really wasn’t trying to irritate lefties, just giving my opinion on why left-handed rifles are important to many.

You’ve heard the testimonies of a number of left-handers that shoot right handed flintlocks without issue.

Sure, there may be some small advantages, but I don’t think they are generally huge.

Over the years we’ve been taken aback by some comments from lefties towards us. Some seem to take us not offering left-handed rifles pretty personally.

Jim

 

[Grenadier1758]

@James Kibler, it seems to some of the left-handed shooters that all you have to do is apply a 180 degree phase shift to all the dimensions and you have a left-handed program for your CNC machines. Well that just ain't so. The cost to reset your CNC machines would be as difficult as setting up the CNC programming for an entirely new production line for a small marketing niche. This is all well and good for custom builders who are making one firearm at a time, but not so much for an automated production run. I think you are doing a wonderful service for traditional muzzleloading.

When you have a development cost for a left-handed rifle equal to the development cost of a right-handed rifle for a market that is less than 10% of the volume for the right-handed rifles, that's a tough choice. Both for the developers and customers that want a high-quality product that simply is not available.

 

[Coinneach]

I’ve come to conclude the biggest reason for left-handed rifles is left-handed pride.

Its how we grow up, not at all pride.

 

[jdw276]

"You’ve heard the testimonies of a number of left-handers that shoot right handed flintlocks without issue."

And yet when I offer a righty to shoot my lefty customs I hear I cannot shoot that THING and will not even touch it like they will get the plague. Why is it that a righty will refuse to try to shoot a high quality lefty when many times we are forced to shoot a lowly righty? Why is my rifle called a thing? So many questions about this and so little time left that we will never know. And this is on more than one occasion.

 

[smokepolehall]

"You’ve heard the testimonies of a number of left-handers that shoot right handed flintlocks without issue."

And yet when I offer a righty to shoot my lefty customs I hear I cannot shoot that THING and will not even touch it like they will get the plague. Why is it that a righty will refuse to try to shoot a high quality lefty when many times we are forced to shoot a lowly righty? Why is my rifle called a thing? So many questions about this and so little time left that we will never know. And this is on more than one occasion.

My friend there is no good reason nor answer. I ponder on this Topic even this morning. What i have decided to do for myself is the following. I have 5 Traditional ML's. 3 are Caplocks n 2 rock sparkers. I am going to take one of each because they have patch-box & cheek rests plus they are RH'd n sell them/trade off. My Renegade i will keep, of course i will keep my Under-Hammer as its the best rifle all around i have. The one rock sparker is a .45 has no cheek piece n no patch-box n its paid for & is accurate. I will build myself a LH Flintlock, caliber i have not decided on nor the twist rate. It won't be above a .54 nor smaller than a .45. Certainly will not be a .50

 

[scratcherky]

I have an SMR and a Woodsrunner. Both fit me just fine on the left side. The WR even has significant cast in the wrong direction, but I can't tell it from bringing it up to my face and straight back into my shoulder, it just fits.

I built a left-handed gun, it's okay but the lock sucks. Really good left-handed locks are hard to find so I bought from one of the usual suspects. The next time I built a gun from a board it wore a Kibler lock because it doesn't make a rat's behind which side the lock is on as far as shooting goes.



According to a Colt revolver book I have, it is pretty certain that Sam Colt was at least left eye dominant and shot his revolvers left handed. He was also a megalomaniac and it was only natural that he wouldn't give a speckled damn about anyone else's inconvenience handling his creations. He also nearly ruined his company by making the historically stupid decision of refusing Rollin White's patent offer, but that's another story.

And to Mr. Kibler, it's your business and you run it how you need to to remain profitable. I hope your investments eventually make you a pile of money, you have earned it. However, if the tables were turned and YOU were left handed, or born with some other handicap, your attitude toward others like that would be very different. "Pride" is why most of us buy your products, some (like me) would be proud to own a proper, left-handed example of at least one of your designs. Refusing to consider 10% of your potential customer base and even going so far as to insult them is a poor business move. I guarantee you wouldn't be happy if all you could buy was a left-handed Woodsrunner to shoot.

I do not view being left handed as a handicap.

 

[jdw276]

I do not view being left handed as a handicap.

Neither do I as I r one, but many think its the devil's work......

 

[reddogge]

Indeed. Unless you had triple jointed E.T. fingers.

I figured out how to load the M1 left handed. Turn the gun around so the muzzle is facing back and put it under your left arm. Then depress the clip with the left hand which also would hold back the operating rod. Turn it around and shoot it.

 

[Grenadier1758]

Even language has it in for lefthandedness. The Latin root for left is "sinister " and for right the term is ""dextro". We use dextrose as synonymous for capable. We should know that we should accept being left handed as okay. While I support the desire for more left handed firearms in the marketplace, I am not capable of making them.

 

[The Appalachian]

I do not view being left handed as a handicap.

Yeah, wow, nothing but attempts at insulting left handed folk....I have to wonder, why?

Mr. Kibler should hire somebody to handle PR, because he sucks at it........

 

[Cruzatte]

Stock architecture like the cheek piece and patch box being wrong sided for a lefty?

Only partially. Production rifles are profiled with neither cast on, nor cast off, but are what I call straight. That is you can draw a center line from front sight to butt. With a straight stock one could put the cheek piece on the left side of the stock, & the patch box on the right, and the rifle could still be shot comfortably by a left handed person, provided the screws, patch box hinge etc. don't create distracting scratches on the shooter's cheek. OTH, perhaps there's enough drop that this will be of little or no concern.

 

[Cruzatte]

I do not view being left handed as a handicap.

I never have, either.